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An Archetype refers to established concepts or roles (usually of characters) that can be clearly observed and elaborated upon when looking at patterns throughout the Fire Emblem series. The long-running Fire Emblem series often recycles certain concepts and roles for various characters across many different games. The commonly cited character archetypes, listed here, are a purely fan-made construction and have no official backing. As such, some fans are critical of their legitimacy and the way some archetypes are designed or how characters are assigned to various archetypes (usually, but not always based primarily on appearances and stats). However, it is interesting to observe the many trends followed throughout in the series. It would appear that the designers have their own set of official archetypes, which could very well differ from the fan ones. For instance, they describe Titania as a Jagen, while fans usually call her an Oifey.

The following is a list and description of each archetype. Keep in mind that this list is incomplete, and is still undergoing research and ongoing legitimization, and may change in light of future releases or new information.

Jagen

One of the most common archetypes, a Jagen character is usually a character that joins the group early in the game, and usually as the main Lord's guardian or mentor lore-wise. They appear impressive at first, but are usually inferior to other units that have been leveled up. Jagens are almost always Paladins. There are two types of Jagens.

Pure Jagen

They are based off the PaladinJagen from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, As mentioned above, Jagen serves as a figure of wisdom and a mentor to the Lord. A majority are elderly or otherwise formerly retired knights who reentered service for the sake of the main Lord.Gameplay-wise, they appear as an early game promoted unit and are usually one of the first units already present in the player's army. Despite being promoted and having slightly better starting stats than most early game units, Pure Jagens have very low growth rates attributed to their advanced age. While they are not useless units, they are easily overshadowed by many units acquired much later in-game.

Oifey

They are based off the paladin Oifey from Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War.Story-wise, Oifeys serve a similar role to Jagens as a mentor to the Lord and as an early game promoted unit. Oifeys are often older than the Lord of the game, but roughly no older than 35 years old in appearance.Gameplay-wise, however, unlike Jagen, their starting stats are only just slightly above the main cast. Instead, they have relatively solid growth rates that modestly keeps them performing consistently alongside other army members, making them capable units in the long run.

*Felicia and Jakob are Oifeys depending on Corrin's gender. If male, Felicia is the Oifey while Jakob is not. If female, Jakob is the Oifey while Felicia is not.

Cain and Abel

They are based off Cain and Abel, a Cavalier duo from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Appearance-wise, Cains have a more serious personality, while Abels have a more laidback personality. One is usually clad in red, usually the Cain, and the other is usually clad in green, usually the Abel, and the duo are often highlighted by the fact that one wears red armor while the other is clad in green armor.Story-wise, They have a shared connection that has been established long before the story started.Gameplay-wise, Cains and Abels are two units recruited in the army who share the same base class, usually, but not always, two Cavaliers. Cains tend to favor Strength, Defense, and HP growths. Abels tend to favor Speed, Skill, and Luck growths. However, some aspects of either can be swapped between them.

*Note that Alva and Cain, while considered of the archetype by fans, are left out in the official page for the Cain and Abel archetype in the Archanea Chronicle.

Ogma

They are based off the MercenaryOgma from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Appearance-wise, A majority of Ogmas are older men, often with scars, and are muscular.Story-wise, Ogmas are either leaders of a mercenary group or wandering sellswords who encounter the army. Either by freedom of choice or payment later in exchange for their services, they become members of the army. They tend to serve as bodyguards for nobles, and like Navarres, many resume mercenary work after the war or otherwise fade into obscurity.Gameplay-wise, Ogmas generally have high and balanced starting stats, and slightly above average stat growths, making them good units all around.

Bord and Cord

They are based off the Axe Fighter duo Bord and Cord from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, most of the pairs tend to have a connection between the two, whether they be familial or friendly.Gameplay-wise, much like the Cain and Abel archetype, these duos join early in-game. They are the first recruited axe fighters. Bords excel in Strength and HP, while Cords excel in Speed. Another trait is that either one of them can exceed in Skill and Luck, depending on the game.

Julian

They are based off the Thief Julian from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, Julians are also notable for establishing or having an established relationship with the Lena and/or Navarre characters.Gameplay-wise, Julians are low-level thieves recruited within the first few chapters of the game. While their combat capabilities are not high, they are useful for their unique ability to use either Lockpicks or the Pick skill to open doors and chests. Julians are recruited either in the same chapter, or at most, one chapter before or after the Lena of the game is recruited.

Lena

They are based off the ClericLena from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, most members are female and are always captured or held hostage by bandits or the enemy army and require the player to rescue them to recruit them. A majority of this archetype also shares a strong connection to the Julian or Navarre character of their game.Gameplay-wise, Lenas are among the earliest recruited units in the game as they serve as the primary healer.

Navarre

They are based off the Myrmidon/MercenaryNavarre from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, due to culture or nature of their nations, they carry a strict warriors code and are often very silent or taciturn. Several have a bond with the games Julian or Lena characters. Like Ogmas, Navarres tend to vanish after the war.Gameplay-wise, Navarres are early game swordsmen usually encountered as enemies who the player must talk to them to recruit them. Favoring high speed and skill growths, they are often recruited carrying a Killing Edge.

Merric

They are based off the MageMerric from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, Merrics are energetic male Mages. Merrics are also noted to have been trained by a skilled Sage or other individuals whom they credited as their main mentor. Their mentor is often the Wendell of the game.Gameplay-wise, Merrics appear early, usually excel in Wind magic, and are usually the first Mage recruited in-game.

Wendell

Named after Wendell from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, Wendells are older characters who serve as magic teachers. For a majority of them, their students are the Merric of the game.Gameplay-wise, they tend to be recruited around the midpoint of the game as a promoted magic user with good base stats and generally competent growths, making them perfectly usable alongside pre-recruited mages. Some have likened them to a magical version of the Oifey archetype.

Jeorge

They are based off the SniperJeorge from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, Jeorge was a simple traveler who joined Marth's army, however, it is later revealed that he was the son of the Menidy family, one of five powerful noble families in Archanea. Since then, numerous Jeorges have appeared in Fire Emblem games, posing as a simple traveler, only to be revealed to be an important member of royalty, nobility, or otherwise plot-critical heritage.Gameplay-wise, Jeorges are usually early or mid-game recruits.

Maria

They are based off the princess of MacedonMaria from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, the age of Marias vary from young girls to teenage females, but all share the trait of coming from noble blood or otherwise plot-related heritage.Gameplay-wise, Marias are the second recruited female healers who are recruited much later than the Lena character. Due to their later recruitment than Lenas, they are sometimes eclipsed by them at that point, but they nonetheless come with a myriad of perks that helps them match and exceed the Lena in some aspects. Some are infantry units, i.e. Clerics like Lenas, but a majority are horseback, i.e. Troubadours.

Minerva

They are based off the Wyvern RiderMinerva from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Appearance-wise, a majority of the Minerva archetype is comprised of female Wyvern Rider units clad in red armor much like their namesake. Male Minervas also exist and are usually clad in black armor, but also follow the same trends. Gender and armor color are not mutually inclusive, though Minervas rarely deviate from the standard image.Story-wise, Minerva was a Dracoknight clad in red armor who first fought against Marth's army as an enemy, but later switched sides after circumstances are resolved and was persuaded into joining, even if it meant that she would fight her brother Michalis. Minervas are typically persuaded into fighting their home nation and sometimes their own family or mentors/leaders and are always first encountered or recruited as an enemy unit on the field initially, similar to the Navarre archetype.

Linde

They are based off the MageLinde from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, Lindes are young, female mages. Lindes are most notable for having lost a loved one either before the events of the game or early on in the story.Gameplay-wise, They appear as the first recruitable female Mage, but usually after or at the same time as the Merric of the game. Lindes generally excel in Fire or Light Magic. They are statistically stronger in raw Magic power when compared to Merrics, but lack his archetype's Speed.

Whitewings

They are based off the Whitewings, a Pegasus Knight trio from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, Whitewings were three sister Pegasus Knights, Palla, Catria, and Est. The Whitewings archetype, also known as the Pegasus Sister archetype, are all known as very capable soldiers. Members of the Whitewings Archetype also have a shared history together, usually due to them being actual sisters or otherwise were knights of a guard. Personality is often consistent as well with Palla, the eldest, being kind-hearted and nurturing, Catria, the middle, being the most serious and driven, and Est, the youngest, being the most free-spirited and often getting into trouble.Gameplay-wise, they are well known for being comprised of three or more Flying Units who can perform the Triangle Attack, a team attack that requires the three sisters to surround an enemy that results in an automatic Critical Hit-like damage.

*Note that while there are other characters who can also utilize the Triangle Attack, they are not counted toward this archetype if they do not belong to a flying class as well. The same applies to the vise-versa situation.

Est

They are based off the Pegasus KnightEst from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Gameplay-wise, Ests are usually characters that join late in the game at an extremely low level, and are difficult to level up due to their low base stats. However, if trained, they usually turn out to be some of the most powerful units in the game. It can be said that they are the antithesis of the Jagen. It should be noted that most Ests usually lack one or two decent stat(s), generally HP and defense. They also have lower availability rates than most other characters.

Tiki

They are based off Tiki from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, Tikis are characters who appear to be very young, generally taking on the appearance of a child or adolescent, but are actually several hundred years old because they have a draconic heritage, either being a Manakete or the Tellius Series equivalent Dragon tribe Laguz. Tikis are generally kidnapped by the enemy nation the protagonist is facing, leading to their eventual rescue and recruitment as a result. They are also protected by a dedicated servant or a guardian who had been protecting them for some time before they are encountered by the army. Their guardian is also often a playable character.Gameplay-wise, Tikis are generally very frail units who are weak in their human forms but thanks to their ability to transform into their Dragon forms with a Dragonstone, they become powerful units in combat and have solid growths otherwise.
Notable Tikis are:

Arran and Samson

Arran and Samson are two playable units from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, Arran and Samson were residing in two separate, but neighboring villages. Due to a rivalry between the villages, Marth was forced to visit only one. Upon visiting one of the villages and recruiting the one who was staying there, the opposing village closed off, preventing the other from being recruited.Gameplay-wise, Members of this Archetype do not have a fixed class that members adhere to. Members of the Arran and Samson archetype are comprised of two or more who appear in the same chapter, but the player is only allowed to recruit one while the others cannot be recruited in the same story file.

*While neither character joins the player's army, the player chooses which of the two to side with in the paralogue they appear in. The character chosen fights alongside the player's army as an Other Unit while the other character becomes the boss of the paralogue.**Though Catherine and Shamir can both be added to Byleth's army, there is a sidequest that takes place on the Red Wolf Moon where they request you get a Two-Toned Whetstone. There is only one of these items in the game and if the player takes on both requests, giving the stone to one of them results in the other quest never to be completed.

Lorenz

They are based off the GeneralLorenz from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, Lorenz was a fiercely loyal general to his nation of Grust but doubted his nation's goals and intentions during the War of Shadows. Unlike Camus who cannot be persuaded into joining Marth's army, Lorenz can be after realizing that the best path for his nation would be to join Marth's army.Gameplay-wise, Members of the Lorenz Archetype are very difficult units to recruit as some include complex circumstances to be fulfilled in order to be recruited.

Gotoh

They are based off the SageGotoh from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, Gotohs are "mission control" characters, usually guiding the main Lord(s) and their party from the midpoint of the story and sometimes traveling with them during this time.Gameplay-wise, while they are deployed late in the game, usually only directly taking action in the final chapters, Gotohs boast high starting stats and similarly high growth rates to offset their late recruitment.

*In FE9, the player must choose among Naesala, Tibarn, and Giffca for use in the final chapter.
*In FE11, Gotoh only joins if Nagi was not recruited.

Cornelius

They are based off Cornelius from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, Corneliuses are parental figures to the main Lord of the game or another key member of the army. More often than not, they are the monarch of a kingdom or otherwise a person of great importance to several people in the army. They are narratively killed in the story, a majority of the time before the story starts or within the early chapters of the game. Their killer is usually a member of the enemy army the Lord of the game fights for a majority of the game. Their death usually spurs the Lord character into action during the war. They are non-playable characters in the story and are only encountered as field NPCs or Ally characters.

Malledus

They are based off Malledus from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, Malledus served as Marth's tactician, delivering strategy and direction for him in battle. Malleduses are of similar nature, serving as the main tactician of the army. A majority are simple NPCs who do not directly engage in battle, but several characters have doubled as both tacticians and combatants.

Michalis

They are based off the DracoknightMichalis from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, Michalises are enemies, whether they be mad, vain, or ambitious, who would do anything to claim power for themselves; they may or may not have decent reasons for wanting to seize power (such as Michalis's desire to overthrow Dolhr from within or Travant's determination to save Thracia from ruination), but nonetheless their ambitions turn them into pawns of the enemy army and opponents of the player.

Camus

They are based off the Paladin Camus from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, Camuses are generally enemy generals who hold no ill will towards the player's army, and may even have loved ones or friends in that army, but continue to fight out of loyalty to their nation or lord, despite being fully aware that their nation or lord is in wrong and knowing fully well that they will perish in battle. Unlike other enemy commanders, they care about the well being of their subordinates, to the point where they even allow any soldier who does not want to fight to leave the battlefield.

Gharnef

They are based off the Bishop Gharnef from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, Gharnefs are generally the evil overseers who manipulate the events of the game, being responsible for the main conflict and are usually devoutly loyal to the final boss.Gameplay-wise, They tend to be Dark Magic users or Bishops. They are usually defeated just before the final boss.

Gazzak

They are based off the PirateGazzak from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.Story-wise, they are often members and even the leaders of a bandit organization.Gameplay-wise, Gazzaks are enemy pirates or bandits who are generally among the very first boss enemies that the Lord of the game encounters. They are generally low level Axe wielding enemies with notoriously low Skill stats, making it hard for them to land hits against the Lord character who often uses swords, thus having a Weapon Triangle disadvantage against them.

Hardin

They are based off Emperor Hardin from Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem.Story-wise, Hardins are initially kind and benevolent rulers who become possessed by a malevolent force. The majority has connections and past relationships with members in the army, especially at times with the Lord themselves, but their possession turns them cold, ruthless, and cruel characters who oppose the Lord of the game. Hardins never live after their battle against the main Lord, but generally regain control of their sanity before they die.

Kliff

They are based off the VillagerKliff from Fire Emblem Gaiden.Story-wise, Kliff was a villager character who left Ram Village alongside Alm to fight for the Deliverance, despite his inexperience and apparent frailty. While uncommon, several notable units who share many traits with Kliff, such as hailing from a local village that the army encounters and their inexperience to combat or having very informal training, have appeared.Gameplay-wise, They tend to be low-level units, starting in the literal Villager class or a "trainee" class. While they are weaker than every other unit in the game in terms of starting stats, their most notable trait is their incredible stat potential, which is a result of incredibly high growth rates that makes them strong units in the long run.

Rudolf

They are based off Emperor Rudolf from Fire Emblem Gaiden.Story-wise, Rudolfs are ruling monarchs who rule over their kingdom as an emperor. Ambitious and valuing strength, they initiate a war against neighboring countries with varying ambitions, from either a greater overall cause or simple conquest. A majority serve as major antagonists during the story, often the main human villain of the game. Their defeat usually serves as a prelude for the Endgame.

Beowolf

They are based off the Free KnightBeowolf from Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War.Story-wise, Beowolf is a unit who can only be recruited by having a unit pay him 10,000 gold for his services. While uncommon, several other characters throughout the series can only be recruited if they are paid a substantial sum of gold for their services.

*While he can be recruited by paying him a certain amount of gold, he can also be recruited for free by having a certain unit talk to him.

Bandit Twins

They are based off the Bandit twins Maggie and Rose from Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade.Appearance-wise, One generally has a vibrant hair color while the other has darker hair colors. They also tend to have notably flamboyant personalities.Story-wise, The Bandit Twins are comprised of enemy bandit duos who share similar appearances and always appear in tandem as enemies. They are cohorts of schemes of raiding vaults or otherwise steal something valuable that causes them to encounter the Lord.